2026 Mardi Gras & Canoe Carnival 

🚨 **TRAFFIC ALERT & IMPORTANT INFORMATION** 🚨

**7/31/2026 Medford Lakes Colony Mardi Gras**

MARDI GRAS IS A PRIVATE Medford Lakes Colony EVENT AND NOT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC!  Medford Lakes Colony will be checking tags for members/guests.

The Medford Lakes Police Department and Fire Police units will be assisting with traffic control and pedestrian safety near Beach 1.  Don't like waiting in traffic?  Avoid Tabernacle Road!

🚗 **Beach 1 Traffic Pattern**

* All event traffic will be directed into the Beach 1 parking lot.

* Beach 1 will be a DROP-OFF ZONE ONLY — NO PARKING.

* Vehicles will be directed out of the parking lot onto Sagamore Trail toward Iroquois Trail.  The traffic pattern will be the same for pick-up.

*Beach 2 - DO NOT BLOCK THE ROADWAY.  Drop-off and park accordingly.  The roadway must remain clear for emergency services.

**BEACH DRIVE: YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO LAUNCH FROM BEACH DRIVE.  GO TO BEACH 1 OR BEACH 2.

🚶 **Pedestrian Safety**

Beginning at 4:00 PM, two Fire Police units will assist pedestrians crossing Tabernacle Road. All pedestrians will be directed to use the designated entry/exit point onto Beach 1.

🚫 **No Parking Areas**

Parking will be prohibited on:

*Tabernacle Road

*Powhatan Trail (between Tabernacle Road and Tecumseh Trail)

*Sagamore Trail

No parking signs will be posted in designated areas. Please follow all posted restrictions and directions from public safety personnel.

🛶 **Canoe & Kayak Safety Requirements - NJ Law

* All children under 13 years of age must wear a U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket while in a canoe, kayak, or other watercraft.

* A U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket must be available onboard for every person in the canoe, kayak, or other watercraft.

*Navigation light: A bright white light visible from all directions (360°) must be displayed when the canoe is underway or at anchor.

The light must be visible at a sufficient distance to make the vessel identifiable to other boaters.

*Sound-producing device: Carry a means of making an efficient sound signal (for example, a whistle is strongly recommended).

* No alcohol is permitted — Colony Rules.

*NO ENTRY AFTER 8:30 P.M. and we are asking all watercrafts to be off the lake by 10 P.M.

🚫🍺 **DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE.**

The Medford Lakes Fire Department will have a boat on the water assisting with public safety operations.

Please drive carefully, follow all traffic directions, and help us make this a safe and enjoyable Canoe Carnival weekend for everyone.

Have a safe and happy Mardi Gras and Canoe Carnival weekend! 

Dear Medford Lakes Resident,

The Medford Lakes Police Department would like to remind you of a few things which may go unnoticed with all of the excitement of preparing for this year’s Canoe Carnival. This is especially important for homeowner’s surrounding the Aetna’s and hosting parties.

For security purposes, the police department recommends that you keep both the front and back yards of your home well lighted to discourage trespassers. You should also lock the door to the front of your residence to discourage unwanted guests and persons looking for theft opportunity. Motor vehicles should also be locked regardless of where they are parked. Alcohol should be centralized in an area where it can be supervised by adults and not accessible to underage persons.

Extra police personnel from the Medford Township Police Department, Evesham Township Police Department and Burlington County Sheriff’s Department will be used to augment the Medford Lakes Police Department patrols on the evening of Canoe Carnival. Extra patrols should effectively control the loitering and other problems associated with the carnival. Party guests should arrive early as designated streets will be closed to vehicular traffic at 7:30pm. Tabernacle Road will be closed at 7:00 P.M.  Handicapped parking is available by contacting the Colony Office. Please see the Colony News for the designated streets to be closed.

The police department has historically received noise complaints associated with parties lasting into the early morning hours. Canoe Carnival is a community event, which is declared as an exception under the current noise ordinance. Excessive noise is prohibited after 12:00 midnight on Canoe Carnival. Please lower all volume after midnight to an acceptable level. Curfew is 11:00 P.M. (Friday and Saturday) – Ordinance 720.  All e-bike laws will be strictly enforced. 

         Most importantly, please have a safe and wonderful Canoe Carnival.  Please remind your children to wear their bicycle helmet and have a light on their bicycle.  Should you have any questions please contact the police department at (609) 654-2156.  If you need police assistance during the Canoe Carnival, please call Central Dispatch at (609)-267-8300 or 9-1-1 for Emergencies. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Chief John McGinnis, Jr.

Canoe Carnival Traffic Regulations

Chief John McGinnis advises all residents and operators of motor vehicles that the following special traffic regulations will be in effect for the annual Canoe Carnival on Saturday, August 1, 2026. Additional traffic regulations will also be in effect for Chippewa Trail on Friday, July 31, 2026, for the annual Festival of Lights Night.

There will be NO PARKING in the following areas between the hours of 4:00pm, Saturday, August 1, and 4:00am, Sunday, August 2, 2026. Violators will be issued traffic citations and vehicles will be towed at the owner’s expense.

Apache Trail            No Parking the entire length on the west side.

Beach Drive             No Parking the entire length on either side.

Beach One Park Lot No Public Parking, reserved for VIP, handicapped and emergency vehicles.

Bowker Road           No Parking the entire length on the north side.

Cherokee Trail         No Parking southbound (Beach One side.)

Chippewa Trail        No Parking the entire length opposite Upper and Lower Aetna Lakes.

Comanche Circle     No Parking the entire length on either side.

Comanche Trail       No Parking from Stokes Road to Timbo Trail on the lakeside.

Hunter Road             No Parking the entire length on the golf course side.

Huron Trail              No Parking the entire length on either side.

Iroquois Trail           No Parking between Sagamore Trail and Powhatan Trail on the Beach One side.

McKendimen Road  No Parking on the northbound side between Tabernacle Road and Oak Drive.

Minnetonka Trail     No Parking the entire length on the Church side.

Navajo Trail             No Parking the entire length on the west side.

Oak Drive                 No Parking the entire length on either side.

Omaha Trail             No Parking the entire length on the north side.

Pawnee Trail            No Parking the entire length on the north side.

Powhatan Trail         No Parking the entire length on either side.

Sagamore Trail         No Parking between Iroquois Trail and Tabernacle Road on the Powhatan side.

Stokes Road             No Parking on either side between Lenape Trail and Bowker Road.

Stokes Road             No Parking on the northbound side, south of the Bowker/Comanche intersection.

Tabernacle Road      No Parking on either side between Stokes Road and Oak Drive.

Timbo Trail              No Parking the entire length on either side.

Tonkawa Trail          No Parking the entire length on the Lower Aetna side.

Trading Post Trail    No Parking and Time Restrictions as designated.

NOTE:     On ALL trails within the Borough of Medford Lakes, vehicles parked so as to interfere with traffic flow will be cited and towed at the owner’s expense.

All illegally parked vehicles will receive a traffic citation and will be towed to various impound areas throughout Burlington County. Towing and storage fees will be substantial according to the law.

Festival of Light’s Night - Friday, July 31, 2026

There will be NO PARKING in the following areas between the hours of 6:00pm, Friday, July 31, and 2:00am, Saturday, August 1, 2026. Violators will be issued traffic citations and vehicles will be towed at the owner’s expense.

Chippewa Trail        No Parking the side opposite Lower Aetna Lake from McKendimen Road to Beach Drive.

Huron Trail              No Parking the entire length on either side.

Tonkawa Trail          No Parking the entire length on the Lower Aetna Lake side.

NOTE:     On ALL trails within the Borough of Medford Lakes, vehicles parked so as to interfere with traffic flow will be cited and towed at the owner’s expense.

All illegally parked vehicles will receive a traffic citation and will be towed to various impound areas throughout Burlington County. Towing and storage fees will be substantial according to the law.

There will be SPECIAL TRAFFIC REGULATIONS in effect in the following areas between the hours of 7:30pm, Saturday, August 1, 2026, and 2:00am, Sunday, August 2, 2026. At 7:30pm, the entire area bounded by Lower and Aetna Lake, McKendimen Road and Hunters Road will be closed to motor vehicle traffic. Parts of Tabernacle and McKendimen Roads will also be restricted to motor vehicle traffic beginning at 8:30pm.

Beach Drive             Closed to traffic, except emergency vehicles.

Chippewa Trail        Closed to traffic between McKendimen and Hunters Roads, except emergency vehicles.

Sagamore Trail         One-way southbound.

Tonkawa Trail          One-way southbound.

Comanche Trail       Closed to traffic, except emergency vehicles.

Oak Drive                 Closed to traffic between McKendimen and Chippewa, except emergency vehicles.

Tabernacle Road      Closed to traffic between Trading Post and Sagamore Trails at 8:30pm.

Tabernacle Road      Closed to westbound traffic between Oak Drive and McKendimen Road at 8:30pm.

McKendimen Road  Closed to westbound traffic between Oak Drive and Tabernacle Road at 8:30pm.

Pedestrian Traffic

Aetna Way               Pedestrians may not stop, stand or loiter on Aetna Way during the event.

                                   This area needs to remain free and clear for emergency vehicles.

ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES: The possession of alcoholic beverages on public areas and on Colony property is prohibited. ALL Violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

NO CONTAINERS of any sort may be carried onto Beaches One or Two during the evening of Friday, July 31, 2026, Festival of Lights or Saturday, August 1, 2026, Canoe Carnival.

LOITERING, LITTERING and the disruption of PEACE & GOOD ORDER will be prosecuted.  Medford Lakes Colony Property/Parks/Beaches are closed at 10pm.

Once roadways are closed, NO VEHICLES OR E-BIKES will be permitted into the event areas.